Lingerie store La Perla pulls mannequin with protruding ribs amidst Twitter outcry
Store mannequins are known to be notoriously (many would say problematically) thin — increasingly so as the years go by. But a controversial shopfront display at the upscale lingerie chain La Perla has shocked even more people than usual this week by featuring a mannequin with ribs that protrude from its body.
Spotted by a concerned shopper named Michael Rudoy at La Perla's SoHo location in New York City, the mannequin in question was wearing a red two-piece swim suit and a white wrist band when Rudoy took its picture.
The mannequin's collarbones, hip bones, and most noticeably, ribcage, jutted out sharply, prompting Rudoy to tweet a photo of it with the caption "How does #LaPerla think ribs on a mannequin is ok?!"
Rudoy was careful to include truth-in-advertising advocate Seth Matlins' Twitter handle in the hopes of calling some attention to the issue.
Maltins was quick to retweet the photo, adding his own criticism of the mannequin to the tweet along with the #NotBuyingIt hashtag, which is often used by citizens to point out problematic advertisements.
Soon, enough people were using the hashtag to criticize La Perla that it started trending on Twitter.
Many of the complainants called the mannequin irresponsible, alleging that the it could contribute towards poor body image and eating disorders in young women.
Source
Victoria's Secret was created for that reason actually, the creator wanted to feel comfortable and not creepy going into a lingerie store to buy something for his wife.
Edit: Maybe to buy for himself?
Edited at 2014-05-17 12:27 pm (UTC)
who cares?
They are gonna get a lot of publicly from this which is what they most likely were aiming at.
Edited at 2014-05-17 06:48 am (UTC)
If I would go to the store and saw that mannequin I would body check for the rest of the day like...
I C A N N O ' T
"Many of the complainants called the mannequin irresponsible, alleging that the it could contribute towards poor body image and eating disorders in young women."
like you said, the normal, thin but smooth mannequins are far more dangerous for people with unhealthy body images. they are so unrealistic, they give the kind of expectation most people can't ever attain. in real life extreme weight loss often leads to nastily jutting collarbones and a sunken saggy stomach like this mannequin. i think it's very unattractive (now someone will probably get mad at me for saying this, but i think it's unattractive because it's so unhealthy, it makes me sad. being thin is fine but looking malnourished is a different thing). i acknowledge my body kind of looks like that and it's definitely not what i want to see when i look in the mirror. so really, seeing this makes me want to be healthier lol. it's just too realistic.
Edited at 2014-05-17 11:25 am (UTC)
And I just want to add why the goal of attaining a mannequin like body is so dangerous, which is that:
- If a woman were to have those proportions, they wouldn't be able to safely carry a child and/or most likely wouldn't have a menstrual cycle
Gawd EDs are fucking irrational